Aspects of the present invention relate to a technique to improve usability in a GUI environment, and particularly aims for menu selection excellent in operability.
In order to improve usability in the GUI environment, techniques described in Japanese Patent Application Publication Nos. 2002-91649, 2006-113705, Hei 8-123647, 2000-339482, and the like have been proposed conventionally.
Generally, in many applications using the GUI, the user has to select a menu item displayed by clicking on an object. In an application running on a certain operating system, the user presses the right button of the mouse to make a menu show up, and then selects an item in the menu with the mouse or a cursor key. When there are a few items shown in the menu, there are a few operational problems. However, there are many applications having a menu shown with many items or a menu shown in multiple hierarchical levels. When a frequently used menu item by the user is located in the lower part of the menu or in a lower hierarchical level, the operability is not exactly good.
Aside from a challenge to enhance efficiency in dealing with many menu items, there exists a case where it is effective to give a certain numerical amount simultaneously at the time of item selection. For example, suppose that options such as “increase volume” and “decrease volume” are provided. If the user is allowed to not only simply select an item but also simultaneously designate “how much” (degree) in the application, the user enjoys a better operability. General menu selection in the GUI environment is not designed to allow the amount to be designated at the same time as selection. Accordingly, the user has to designate the amount, when necessary, by making typical candidates show up as submenu items or making another UI (including a dialog box) show up. This is another challenge for operation efficiency.